From Friend to Family
by StrattyPlus
Summary: Luthier asks Alm to befriend his sister Delthea, and he comes to realize how good of a friend she makes. Perhaps she will replace what lingers for Celica. Read and Find out!
1. Chapter 1

**Gonna give credit to the artist for allowing me to use their Delthea as the cover image. They go by poocas on Tumblr and rigelianero on Twitter. I encourage you to check out his other works if you like his style!**

Chapter 1

"Greetings Alm." Luthier entered the tent trying to act as normal as he could.

"Oh hello, Luthier. Whats up?"

"Your perception is impressive", Luthier's expression turned into a more melodramatically solemn one. "To know something was troubling me before I can even say."

"I just-", Alm tried to say.

"Alm we are friends correct? I remember you nodding the last time I asked."

"Heh. I did nod, Luthier." He smiled to sell the thought to his friend.

"Right.", Luthier paused to make sure he was clear with what he was about to request. "So then, it wouldn't be out of the bounds of what is customary to ask you to "hook up" with my sister?"

"Your sister? W-with Delthea? That's absolutely out of bounds, Luthier!" the leader yelled with much fluster.

"Oh that's surprising. I asked your friend Gray before coming to you and he said you'd be more than up for it." Luthier said with honest sorrow.

Alm sighed trying not to be too hard on the misguided mage. "Of course Gray would. What gave him that idea? What did he tell you?"

"Well I didn't want to jeopardize our friendship for a silly request, so I asked Gray for assurance. What he told me was that you still pine for a girl from your childhood," That got Alm's eyes to go wide. "So Delthea's youthful appearance would have to appeal to your sensibilities!" Luthier declared like this answer had to be correct.

"Celica?!" It had to be.

"So it's true?" Luthier questioned with a point.

"No! Wait, I mean..." Alm had a lot he could've said but was interrupted again.

"Really? He also told me that "hooking up" refers to the friendship between a male and a female."

"You really shouldn't look towards Gray for guidance regarding women... or me."

"Then I will say this in my own words." And Luthier requested with gusto. "Would you be willing to befriend my sister Delthea?"

"That's still a rather odd request. Why? Does Delthea not have any friends in the army?" there was worry in his asking.

"Sadly not. Even in our home village she intimidated potential friends with her magical ability and overbearing sense of superiority", Luthier said what he saw as the truth.

"Oh. I'm sorry for her." the sympathy was apparent in both Alm's voice and expression.

"Yes, I try to help her, but as she likes to point out I'm not the best model for making friends. That's why I want you to be that positive influence on her that I've failed to be!"

"I see. Well this is actually a good excuse to strike a conversation which I've been meaning to do. I'll see what I can do."

"Oh thank you, Alm! You're truly the best friend I could ask for. Well I believe so? You're certainly better than any of my cats at least."

"Umm thanks, Luthier." Alm took the intended compliment.

Luthier exited his leader's tent happy that his sister will be tended to.

Alm made it a point to make time for a first impression with Delthea. Which had to take time. The army just recently crossed Rigel's borders and safe travel was a large concern, so time for socializing was hard to come by.

But the opportunity eventually found him when the team settled in the Black Forest, where locals don't care for your allegiance. Just if you pay good coin for quartering.

And surprisingly, Alm wasn't the one to start the conversation. When the group was gathered in the inn's dining hall, many members were still eating but Alm had his face planted in a book on a small bench to the side. That's when Delthea grabbed a seat next to him.

""Hey, leader." she smiled at him with her usual cheer.

""Oh hello, Delthea." Alm was a little shocked, but he smiled back anyway and put his book to the side. "Good of you to speak up, I was actually meaning to ask you if you've become accustomed to your new situation."

"Oh yeah it's been great." You guys are a lot more accepting than the people at my village."

"Oh." Alm was relieved and not all too surprised that Luthier's story partly contradicts this. "How did the villagers treat you back there?"

"It was just a pretty backwards place. I couldn't show off my magic skills to no one and a lot of them spread rumors of me being a witch because I was so naturally good at it." She said in a bummed tone.

"That's rough. Shame that you had to join an army to find a place to be yourself."

"I know right." she agreed to how pathetic that sounded.

"But we're glad to have you. A gifted mage is definitely the right label for you."

"Ahh thanks!" Delthea lit up. "It's a fact, you know", and she quickly got defensive. She put her pointed finger on his chest and looked in his eyes desperate for some understanding. "People just seem to get the wrong idea when I say it. Glad you get the memo though."

Alm smiled at the reaction he got, but looking down at her, he was reminded at how short the girl before her was. "Though I have to say." He shifted himself straight forward, looking down with some thought. "You're rather young. How old I don't know, but I worry that it's an age where this combat is taking a harder toll on you than the rest. Is it?" he quickly turned his head to look at her.

"Gah!" the subject was very touchy for her and she tried to assure him, "It's not that big a deal! I'm like twice as mature as my brother and I'm keeping my sanity just fine. But I don't want to go through the phase for people to look past it..."

Alm could see how she looked downtrodden, and the others in earshot were starting to make assumptions.

"Had enough of that as is, y'know?"

Delthea rubbed her arm and sideglanced at Alm expecting a response.

Gray just looked in awe at Alm. Tobin also saw the scene and commented on it to Gray "Who woulda thought huh?" .

Python had the biggest smirk, but kept his words to himself so he could ask for the juicy details later.

Alm saw this and ignored them for her sake. "Then I won't press the issue."

That got her to continue, "About fighting... I wouldn't want to make a career of it. I'm good and all, but magic just isn't what I see myself doing. People tell me that's a waste, my brother and parents weren't an exception."

'Weren't?' Alm knew that was a more sensitive topic if the implications were true.

"Thing is, I don't really know what I'd rather do..."

"You got time to think, I'm sure a lot even after we're done with this war." he said teasing her most likely really young age. "I didn't have a plan to get where I am. I just wanted to be a soldier and following that goal lead to me becoming leader of the Deliverance."

"Hmm, sounds like you got lucky." Delthea felt a little better with his assurance.

"Uh. That might not be far from the truth.", Alm deadpanned. 'Why even tell that story to her?'

"Heh. Did I strike a nerve?" Delthea giggled.

"Maybe. It's something for me to think about."


	2. Chapter 2

**Gonna give credit to the artist for allowing me to use their Delthea as the cover image. They go by poocas on Tumblr and rigelianero on Twitter. I encourage you to check out his other works if you like his style!**

A/N: So I guess I'll be replying to the reviews from now on. Reviews encourage me so I'll encourage you to make reviews. I appreciate the constructive reviews, compliments aswell, hate I can take aswell. I won't moderate them, unless you guys think it's an issue.

Shmacklar: I didn't really take into account how I wrote speech while drafting this chapter, but I did make sure to look at your review while I was editing. So thank you for the advice.

FanficLovingPerson: I am serious. Delthea is 13 and Alm is 17 canonically, so I know it's weird. They're just my two favorite characters from Sov. Only way I plan to mitigate the weirdness is by having Delthea's birthday eventually, so they're 3 years apart instead. That may not be enough for some people, so I won't ask you to bare with.

Guest: Thank you. Having people onboard with the ship (npi) is what I hoped for.

Antex - The Legendary Zoroark: This series will probably be 7-10 chapters and I'll be updating between 2-3 weeks between each. Hope that's enough for you.

Fanfic: Thank you too for leaving a review aswell. I could've been coy and said, "Thank you for supporting trash", but I'd rather not depricate me or the audience who likes this story.

Chapter 2

Not much time passed since the last time Alm encountered Delthea. On the eve of Alm's inevitable encounter with the Rigelian, scouts say Berkut alongside Fernand would be leading the charge. Alm had a lot riding on this next battle. Failure would put into question the invasion and an arduous war of attrition could be the result. Other scenarios were stewing in Alm's head as he leaned on the outer post of his tent.

"Hey Alm." Delthea greeted.

"Hello again, Delthea. What brings you here?" Alm questioned not turning to face her with his mind obviously focused on other prospects.

"Ahh nothing. Say, where are you from?" she questioned without wanting to point out his anxiety.

The inquiry piqued some of Alm's interest. "I used to live in Ram Village before joining the Deliverance." he stated matter of factly.

"Huh? That's in the middle of the middle of nowhere. And here I thought you were more chic and metropolitan."

"Heh," Her brazen attitude was having an affect on Alm's mood, "I figured you could denote if I was chic or not before. This armor is the only thing I wear."

"U-uh, am I using that word wrong?"

"I can't blame you. It's not like you were raised in a metropolitan afterall."

"You hush." Delthea managed to break the ice, but she didn't want to take too many hits to her dignity.

"I told you yesterday that I don't know what to do with my life." the young mage changed the subject. "I thought it over and found one certainty."

Delthea ruminated on this since last speaking to Alm. The revelation came to her and it excited her enough to share the information. But announcing it to anyone else would feel too random. Even to a good acquaintance like Clair.

"What's that?" pressed Alm.

"I'm going to leave my village for good and move to the city. Then I'll fall madly in love with someone suave. And before you say anything, suave I'm pretty sure means manly."

"Beats me." the boy shrugged.

"A guy who's not from a backwater village would be fine too... no offense."

"I'll try to hold back the tears." Alm said not taking the comment personally.

"Someone like Clive would be great. Though Clive himself would be better." She fawned.

"Clive?" Alm went wide eye'd at the suggestion. Not just for the obvious reasons, but because Clive suggested to ignore Luthier's plea and kill her at the sluice. That is something Alm would rather leave in the past.

"Yeah. You're close to him, you know what he's into?"

"Mostly Mathilda. In fact, they're a couple." Alm grimaced breaking the news to her.

"Mathilda?!" She cried in disgust. "Bleh! Like she's so perfect."

"Perfect, no, but she is a beauty. I'll admit I was a bit flustered upon freeing her from Desaix's fortress."

"I bet Clive came in on a white stallion and hoofed all those villains for her." Delthea admired with clear jealousy.

"As romantic as that sounds, reality tells a different story. It was an arduous bottleneck of sorts that involved a lot of ranged combat from our mages and archers. Clair had to fly inside the fortress to divert some of the arrows sniping at Mathilda." The thought of the past victory raised some spirits for Alm.

"Ouch...", Delthea commented feeling just a little sorry for Mathilda.

"Clive couldn't do much at the time, but no one wished for her safety more among us than him." And that was the truth. He didn't want to paint an unfair image of Clive, but turning her off of him was Alm's intent.

"What does he see in her Alm?" It didn't work. "Aren't I pretty enough? C'mon I won't get mad. Admit it." she winked at him.

"I would say you're..." the Deliverance leader paused to take in his young friend's appearance. What stands out at first glance is her brown and yellow scheme. The two colors compliment well. Delthea's golden ribbons pop almost irredscently with her brunette hair as the backdrop. From the front her hair appears short and messy with how her locks comfortably fall at the side of her face and extra hair is brushed into small points. But the back is styled into a long, stiff, ponytail.

It was effectively appealing and Alm could appreciate it even more knowing the sunny young girl. But all he wanted to verbalize was "...cute."

"Thanks! Was that so hard?" Delthea accepted the compliment with a smile. "But what is it then?"

Alm recalled, "Clive once told me that he had a lot of suitors pursue him in the past. What made Mathilda stand out was her strength in the battlefield. You are strong, Delthea, but you have a long way before you reach the same calibur as her."

"Is that all? I just have to work my butt off, show up Mathilda, and Clive will come crawling over to me?"

"Definitely not. Something like love... " Alm reached into his heart for the right words. "Love like that where it feels like you're connected to someone, it's impossible to sever that."

"Are we speaking from experience here?"

"Umm... no." Alm lied.

"Then I'm not listeniiing." She sung. "Strong is apparently in, and that's what I'll be. You won't mind helping me right, Alm? Training new recruits sounds like a part in your job description."

"If I had to guess, that's more in Lukas' department. Besides, I doubt I could help you improve your magic."

"Actually I was thinking more along the lines of teaching me some swordplay."

"You want to learn how to use a sword?"

"It makes sense if you think about it."

Alm thought about it. "Well a sword can occasionally be the better option against a certain opponent. And you may find yourself too drained too cast magic."

"Ding ding! Exactly my thought process."

"It's a sound concern. Hold on. I believe I have a few training swords for us to spar with." Alm searched inside his tent for the blades.

"Alright!"

And so Alm went on to teach Delthea the basics in sword training.

"Distribute the weight between your legs. And try to loosen up your stance." instructed Alm.

"What does that even mean?", whispered Delthea.

It wasn't easy and at times Delthea didn't take it very seriously.

"In a clash like this, you want to make sure your head isn't in range of an opponent's thrust-owww!"

"Like you just did?" the girl laughed.

"Yeah.", Alm sighed. "Like that."

But as time went on and Delthea got more comfortable with a sword, the more focused she became.

"Remember that your sword isn't your only option your feet and, if you have one, a spare hand can also help. A kick to the groin is a common technique." Alm winced and braced himself.

"What? Were you expecting something?" Delthea's tone was genuinely serious.

"No, it's nothing." His teacher was happily surprised.

The pair spent so long practicing that they missed dinner, so they had to improvise a meal.

"I'll let you practice on this fruit with a sharp blade, but we have to eat whatever you cut. Alm said while placing different foods on poles

Delthea nodded and took up her iron sword. The weight of the sword was hard to manage at first as she whiffed entirely her first swing and the second she just smacked the orange of the pole, but by following Alm's advice of a proper stance, the blade almost magically became lighter on her wrist. She began to try different approaches; thrusting, jump attacks, moving as if the orange was about to attack. She skewered a whole fruit salad on to her said and when it came time to pack up, she sliced the wooden poles into sizable chunks.

"Okay, that's enough for today." Alm declared.

"Finally." Delthea relaxed on the grass near Alm's tent. "No offense, I'm just not used to this and it's tiring." she tried to preemptively protect herself from criticism her teacher might say.

Alm smiled. "Well you caught on very quick. More than I first did. Not that I should be surprised."

That caught her off guard, she stumbled in her words trying to respond. That touched her more than the praise she usually got.

"There is still more fundamentals to go over. That could be the next lesson and afterwards I can teach you how to use different types of swords and what to do when facing non sword users. That is if you still want to continue?"

"Well duh! I can holler you any time?" the prospect of spending more time like this excited her.

"Whenever I'm able to." Alm sat down beside her and passed her a bowl of fruit scraps and bread. "I'll try to free up some time for you."

They ate their improvised dinner on the ground. By the time they were finished, everyone else was already in their respective tents. Some rubbernecked the sight of the uncanny duo sharing a meal by themselves, but no one felt the need to bother them. The two wore content expression as the viewed different sides of the night sky after eating. Delthea decided to break the silence.

"Hey Alm."

"What is it?"

"How'd you learn to use a sword?"

His face went dark upon hearing the question.

"To tell you the truth, I can pinpoint when I first started my training."

"The young girl turned towards him looking deeply at his visage. Alm began telling the story, "It was after my village almost got attacked by a band of rogue Zofian knights. I was playing with my friend Celica in the field when I heard Faye scream from across the woods. When Celica and I got there we saw that the army also caught our other friends. They're all in the Deliverence with us currently; Gray, Tobin, Kilff, along with Faye. I stepped in and punched their leader as hard as I could, but that wasn't much for help. We would've all been killed on the spot if my grandpa Mycen hadn't saved us. I don't know why but Mycen said Celica wasn't allowed to live in the village anymore, and my training commenced soon after he came back from escorting her home."

The way he spoke was tinged with pain from recollecting the memory. Delthea felt a great pity for her older friend. "How young were you?"

"Probably a lot younger than you. It's been eight years since then, so I should have been nine at the time."

"Well that stinks. Knights are supposed to be people you can look up to as protectors. To have them turn their lance on you like that and losing your friend because of them... the world must have seemed like a scary place for you growing up."

"It is a scary place. Now especially. That's why I want to change it. I don't hold anything against knights as group. I've been written off because of the actions of others." A certain former Deliverance member came to his mind. "I'd hate to do that to someone else."

Delthea took in what he said and chuckled a bit. "Hmm trying to stealth lecture me, eh?"

"It's just my thoughts. I like this Delthea now. The prideful and fun one. I wouldn't actively try to change you. The only one who should try to is, well, you."

"I wish my brother understood that." Delthea wistfully said.

Alm face got shook by the mention of Luthier. "Yeah he doesn't." Alm had to tell her.

"Delthea, so this doesn't cause misunderstanding between us down the line, I have too tell you that Luthier asked me to be your friend." I know it's silly. I would've wanted to whether or not he asked me to, and-" Delthea stopped his rambling by putting a finger up to his lips.

"Shhhhh. He's an idiot. I don't want to blame you for something he did. Okay?"

Alm was stunned with relief. He gave a delighted nod in response.

"What are you even doing talking to Lu anyway? He told me he was your friend and I didn't really believe it at the time."

"Well my first impression of Luthier was him begging for us to save you. I can see he cares for you greatly, even doesn't always display it the best way. To be honest, his unique personality can be rather endearing."

"Yeah, it's that weirdness that makes him appealing to have for a friend, you're not the first one here to say that, but it's a different story when he's your brother."

"I guess that's something I wouldn't understand. Not having a family and all.

That hit a little close to home for Alm, but you wouldn't know by seeing his face. He was just happy to have his mind of the worries to be had tomorrow. The evening ended with their good nights, but he still felt great and slept happily. Nights like that and the promise of future ones encouraged him even more to not mess up this next battle.


End file.
